Meir Ariel ( he, מאיר אריאל; March 2, 1942 – July 18, 1999) was an Israeli singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was known as a "man of words" for his poetic use of the Hebrew language in his lyrics. His influences included Hebrew poets such as

ibn Gabirol Solomon ibn Gabirol or Solomon ben Judah ( he, ר׳ שְׁלֹמֹה בֶּן יְהוּדָה אִבְּן גָּבִּירוֹל, Shlomo Ben Yehuda ibn Gabirol, ; ar, أبو أيوب سليمان بن يحيى بن جبيرول, ’Abū ’Ayy ...

Natan Alterman Nathan Alterman ( he, נתן אלתרמן, August 14, 1910 – March 28, 1970) was an Israeli poet, playwright, journalist, and translator. Though never holding any elected office, Alterman was highly influential in Socialist Zionist politics, ...

, S. Y. Agnon and

Hayim Nahman Bialik Hayim Nahman Bialik ( he, חיים נחמן ביאַליק; January 9, 1873 – July 4, 1934), was a Jewish poet who wrote primarily in Hebrew but also in Yiddish. Bialik was one of the pioneers of modern Hebrew poetry. He was part of the vangu ...

, and American singer-songwriters such as

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

. Ariel's fame and recognition grew posthumously.

Biography

Ariel was born on the

Fast of Esther The Fast of Esther (', he, תַּעֲנִית אֶסְתֵּר) is a fast from dawn until dusk on Purim eve. This fast, unlike other fasts is a custom. Unlike the other fasts in Judaism, it is not mentioned in the Talmud, but only in the Midrash ...

in 1942 and grew up in

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

Mishmarot Mishmarot () is a kibbutz in northern Israel near the town of Pardes Hanna-Karkur. Located about 50 m above sea level and close to the villages Ein Shemer and Kfar Glickson, it falls under the jurisdiction of Menashe Regional Council. In it ...

. Since childhood he was a friend of

Shalom Hanoch Shalom Hanoch ( he, שלום חנוך) (born September 1, 1946) is an Israeli rock singer, lyricist and composer. He is considered to be the father of Israeli rock and modern Israeli music in general, both of which have been profoundly influe ...

, who also lived there and who went on to become one of Israel's most popular rock artists. Ariel served in the

Paratroopers Brigade The 35th Brigade ( he, חֲטִיבַת הַצַּנְחָנִים, ''Hativat HaTzanhanim''), also known as the Paratroopers Brigade, is an infantry brigade unit of paratroopers within the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and forms a major part of ...

of the

IDF IDF or idf may refer to: Defence forces * Irish Defence Forces * Israel Defense Forces *Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006 * Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917 Organizations * Israeli Diving Federation * Interac ...

and participated as part of that brigade in the

Battle for Jerusalem The Battle for Jerusalem took place during the 1947–1948 civil war phase of the 1947–1949 Palestine war. It saw Jewish and Arab militias in Mandatory Palestine, and later the militaries of Israel and Transjordan, fight for control over ...

at the beginning of the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...

. This inspired him to write the song "Yerushalayim Shel Barzel" ("Jerusalem of Iron"). The song was based on

Naomi Shemer Naomi Shemer ( he, נעמי שמר; July 13, 1930 – June 26, 2004) was a leading Israeli musician and songwriter, hailed as the "first lady of Israeli song and poetry." Her song " Yerushalayim Shel Zahav" ("Jerusalem of Gold"), written in 1967 ...

's hit song " Jerusalem of Gold", and borrowed its melody (in turn borrowed from the Basque folk song "

Pello Joxepe "Peio Joxepe" is a traditional Navarrese song. It is very popular in Basque Country (historical territory), the Basque Country, as its music is used by bertsolariak to improvise their compositions. Therefore, it may be sung with different lyrics. ...

"). It was his reaction to what he saw as the hyper-patriotism of the Israeli public and media of that time. The "Yerushalayim Shel Barzel" mini-album cover showed Ariel in his military uniform thus giving him the nickname "the singing paratrooper". After living in the United States for some time, Ariel returned to Israel and decided to create

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

-inspired music. He fought in the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egy ...

in the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

and returned to Mishmarót after the war. Between 1978 and 1988, he released his first three LPs. The first album's title, ''Shirey Chag Umoed Venofel'', is a play on words of the term "Shirèy Chag uMoèd" which means "holiday songs". The album's title could also mean, in Hebrew, "songs for circling, tripping, and falling". In 1987, Ariel, his wife Tirtza, and their three children moved to

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

. Between 1990 and 1997, he released one more LP, one collection album, one live album and three more LPs, the last one being ''Bernard veLouise'' ernard and Louise In 1998, Ariel made a series of condemning comments about the gay and lesbian community in several interviews. This resulted in a majority of his LGBT followers boycotting him and several protests took place outside his home and his performances. In one incident, a few protesters spat on Ariel and poured water on him. As a result, he took a break from performing and apologised for his comments two months later, saying they were prejudiced and ignorant. Ariel died on July 18, 1999 from the Mediterranean spotted (or "Boutonneuse") fever which is caused by the

rickettsia ''Rickettsia'' is a genus of nonmotile, gram-negative, nonspore-forming, highly pleomorphic bacteria that may occur in the forms of cocci (0.1 μm in diameter), bacilli (1–4 μm long), or threads (up to about 10 μm long). The term "rickett ...

parasite Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...

and transmitted by a

tick Ticks (order Ixodida) are parasitic arachnids that are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, species, and "fullness". Ticks are external parasites, living by ...

bite. He was buried in Mishmarot's cemetery. Several

tribute album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

s performed by various Israeli artists performing his songs were released posthumously, among them several live memorial performances, and a track-by-track re-recording of his 1995 album ''Rishumey Pecham'' harcoal sketches An album of Ariel's own unreleased recordings was released as well, titled "Mode Ani", which can be translated as "I am thankful" (based on the Jewish morning prayer).

Ehud Banai Ehud Banai ( he, אֵהוּד בַּנַּאי; born March 31, 1953) is an Israeli singer and songwriter. Biography Ehud Banai was born in Jerusalem. His father was the actor Yaakov Banai, one of the Banai siblings. The family moved to Givatayim ...

wrote "B'loez Canaani", "Caananite Blues" in his memory. Among the many artists for whom Meir Ariel wrote are

Arik Einstein Arieh Lieb "Arik" Einstein ( he, אָרִיק אַייְנְשְׁטֵייְן, ; 3 January 1939 – 26 November 2013) was an Israeli singer, actor, comedian and screenwriter. He was a pioneer of Israeli rock music and was named "the voice of Is ...

Rita Rita may refer to: People * Rita (given name) * Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984) * Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962) * Rita (Japanese singer) * Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita Places * Djarrit, also known as Rita, ...

Sharon Haziz Sharon ( he, שָׁרוֹן ''Šārôn'' "plain") is a given name as well as an Israeli surname. In English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name. However, historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In I ...

and

David Broza David Simon Berwick Broza ( he, דויד ברוזה; born September 4, 1955) is an Israeli singer-songwriter. His music mixes modern pop with Spanish music. Biography David Broza was born in Haifa, Israel. His father was an Israeli–British bus ...

. In 2009, the Israeli postal service issued a stamp in his honor. Ariel is one of the central characters in

Yossi Klein Halevi Yossi Klein Halevi ( he, יוסי קליין הלוי, born 1953) is an American-born Israeli author and journalist. Biography Yossi Klein Halevi was born and raised in Borough Park, Brooklyn, New York in a Jewish family. His parents, Zoltan a ...

's 2013 ''Like Dreamers: The Story of the Israeli Paratroopers Who Reunited Jerusalem and Divided a Nation'' (and Halevi's book is the closest to an English-language biography of Ariel to appear). A biography in Hebrew by Prof. Nisim Calderon and Prof. Oded Zehavi was published in late 2016, entitled "One Errol: A biography of Meir Ariel."

Discography

Albums

*''Shirey Chag Umoed Venofel'' (Songs of holiday and falling commemorative day) 1978 *''...Ugluy Eynayim'' (...And With Eyes Revealed) 1984 *''Yerukot'' (Green) 1988 *''Zir'ey Kayitz'' (Seeds of Summer) 1993 *''Rishumey Pecham'' (Coal Sketches) 1995 *''Bernard Velouise'' (Bernard and Louise) 1997 *''Mode Ani'' (I Thank/I confess) 2000

EPs

*''Yerushalayim Shel Barzel'' (Jerusalem of Iron) 1967 *''Avarnu Et Par'o'' (We overcame Pharaoh) 1990

Best of albums

*''Mivchar'' (Selection) 1991 *''Haosef'' (The Collection) 2001 *''Hameytav'' (The Best of Meir Ariel) 2004

Live albums

*''Dlatot Niftachot Me'atzman'' (with the band, 'Charisma') (Doors Are Opened By Themselves) 1998 *''Behofa'a Acharona Bemoadon Barby 1999'' (On a Last Concert At The Barby Club 1999) 2002

Tribute live albums

*''Im Hagav Layam'' (With My Back To The Sea) 2000 *''Erev Kachol Amok'' (Deep Blue Evening) 2002 *''Chamesh Shanim'' (Five Years) 2005

Videography

*''Masa Habchirot Shel Meir Ariel'' (Meir Ariel's Campaign Tour) 1988 *''Derech Dim'a Shkufa – Hahofa'a'' (Through a Clear Tear – The Show) 2003

References

External links

* *
Jerusalem of Iron
', Lyrics and analysis {{DEFAULTSORT:Ariel, Meir 1942 births 1999 deaths Jewish Israeli musicians Israeli male singer-songwriters Israeli folk singers Israeli rock singers Israeli blues singers Israeli rock guitarists 20th-century Israeli male singers Jewish folk singers Infectious disease deaths in Israel